What is water polo for kids?
Water polo is a competitive team sport played in water between two teams of seven players each. The game consists of four quarters in which the teams attempt to score goals by throwing the ball into the opposing team’s goal. The team with more goals at the end of the game wins the match. To be a Water Polo player, you’ll need incredible core strength, endurance, and the ability to anticipate player movement based on visual cues in an extremely fast and dynamic competition setting. And – you’ll have to do all of that while keeping your head above the water.Water polo offers a unique blend of physical, mental, and social benefits for kids. It fosters physical fitness, enhances swimming skills, promotes teamwork, builds mental toughness, relieves stress, and facilitates character development.Splashball is a water polo program designed specifically for children, usually between the ages of five and nine years old. It serves as an introduction to the sport of water polo, with a focus on building basic water skills and introducing fundamental aspects of the game in a fun and safe environment.Water polo builds strength, endurance, and coordination, all while kids are having a blast. Brain + Brawn – This sport is fast-paced and strategic. Your child will learn to think quickly, stay focused under pressure, and outsmart the competition—all while treading water!Water polo builds strength, endurance, and coordination, all while kids are having a blast. Brain + Brawn – This sport is fast-paced and strategic. Your child will learn to think quickly, stay focused under pressure, and outsmart the competition—all while treading water!
What are the new rules in water polo?
Key changes to water polo rules – For the avoidance of doubt, all possession clock “resets” will similarly be extended to twenty-eight (28) seconds. If the ball rebounds to the same team following a shot on net, the maximum ball possession time shall be eighteen (18) seconds rather than fifteen (15) seconds. As in basketball, two clocks are used to time a water polo game. One indicates the time remaining in the quarter and the other, called the shot clock or 30-second clock, indicates how much time remains for the offensive team to shoot the ball (the team is allowed 30 seconds to shoot the ball).Each of the four periods is eight minutes long but because the clock is stopped when the ball is not ‘in play’, in real life the average quarter lasts around 12 minutes. Each team is only allowed to hold onto the ball for a maximum of 30 seconds before shooting for the goal.
What age to start playing water polo?
Kids as young as 4 or 5 can start water polo. At first, it will look like swimming lessons but soon it will develop into full games and a lot of fun! Water polo can be taught at very young ages, from 4 or 5. To begin with, this is just like swimming lessons but with a ball and goal thrown in for some extra fun. The game requires great swimming skills, hand-eye coordination, steadiness, and teamwork. In order to excel in water polo you must make sure you are a proficient swimmer, can handle the ball well, and continue to exercise in your daily life.The basics of the game are easy to learn and start playing quickly. If you love to swim, and love to be part of a team, you will love water polo.Water Polo: Involves physical contact and can be more intense, so ensuring proper safety measures and supervision is crucial. It’s important for children to have strong swimming skills before starting. Swimming: Generally safer with less physical contact.ABILITIES REQUIRED TO PLAY POLO: Players need to have good hand-eye coordination and be able to react quickly to the movement of the ball and the other players on the field. They should also be able to ride a horse with skill and control, and have a good understanding of how to play the game.Polo is a physically demanding sport that requires strength, endurance, and coordination, but with proper training and conditioning, anyone can start polo from the age of 7 to 77 year old.
How many minutes is a water polo game?
Each of the four periods is eight minutes long but because the clock is stopped when the ball is not ‘in play’, in real life the average quarter lasts around 12 minutes. Each team is only allowed to hold onto the ball for a maximum of 30 seconds before shooting for the goal. The average water polo player swims 1,600 meters in a game (28 minutes). Women’s USA Water Polo has been the top 3 in Olympics since 2000. Athletes from the ages of 14 to 45 have competed in Olympic Water Polo so far.How many quarters are there in Olympic water polo? Olympic water polo matches consist of four, eight-minute quarters. However, due to the clock stopping when the ball is not in play, a quarter typically lasts around 12 minutes — meaning a game usually lasts between approximately 40-50 minutes.Physical benefits of water polo for kids These include a considerable increase in strength, resilience, and speed, as well as improved coordination, orientation, and balance. Similarly, and similar to swimming, water polo also develops lung capacity in those who train for it.But when you combine endurance, physicality, skill, and pure mental toughness, nothing beats water polo. It’s like swimming, wrestling, basketball, and hockey all at once—except immensely harder.But when you combine endurance, physicality, skill, and pure mental toughness, nothing beats water polo. It’s like swimming, wrestling, basketball, and hockey all at once—except immensely harder.
What kind of ball is used in water polo?
A water polo ball is a ball used in water polo and canoe polo, usually characterized by a bright yellow color and ease of grip ability, so as to allow it to be held with one hand despite its large size. Water polo balls are designed for ease of grip. The caps are used to identify both the player and their team, and to protect their ears from injury possibly caused by a water polo ball hitting the head.With players constantly tussling for control of the ball and vying for position, there’s a risk of inadvertent contact, including blows to the head and ears. The earguards on water polo caps act as a protective barrier, shielding the delicate ear structures from potential injuries.The last line of defense in water polo is the goalie. Denoted by their red caps, goalies are allowed to use both hands to block the ball. This position requires a considerable amount of leg strength as goalies are repeatedly lunging and jumping to block incoming shots.Caps in Olympic water polo are used to distinguish the various players on a team as well as to protect the athletes. The colored headgear contains individual numbers and ear protectors.Introduction to water polo rules Players can move the ball by throwing it to a teammate or swimming while pushing the ball in front of them. They can only hold the ball with one hand, other than the goalkeeper who can use both hands.
What is a fun fact about water polo for kids?
Each match consists of four quarters, and each quarter lasts for eight minutes. Water polo originated in england in the late 19th century and was initially called ‘water rugby. The sport became part of the olympics in 1900 for men and in 2000 for women. You would absolutely need to learn how to swim before beginning to play water polo. This is important because during a water polo game, touching the bottom of the pool or hanging on to the sides of the pool is illegal; you must tread water or be swimming the entire time (except for breaks in between quarters).Players are not allowed to touch the bottom or sides of the pool. The ball may not go underwater. Players may only touch the ball with one hand at a time. If a common foul is called, then the offensive team is awarded a free pass.William Wilson, Scottish aquatics pioneer and originator of the first rules of water polo. The rules of water polo were originally developed in the mid-nineteenth century in Great Britain by William Wilson, a British journalist, swimming instructor, and coach.Most regulation water polo pools are at least 6 feet deep. However, in the case of a pool having a shallow end, players are still prohibited from touching the bottom of the pool. Doing so will result in the ball being turned over to the opposing team.
What are the three important skills for water polo?
It requires three basic fundamental skills: swimming, treading (egg-beater) and passing (ball skills). Six field players swim, tread, pass and shoot in an attempt to score into a goal defended by a goalie. Olympic and collegiate pool size is 30 meters x 20 meters. A typical age group pool size is 25 meters x 6 lanes. That player must go immediately to the exclusion area. Exclusion fouls include (i) Holding onto the person/impeding their forward motion, (ii) pushing a person under water, (iii) going over the top of them or (iv) pulling them/their arm away from the ball.Other than the goalkeeper, you will see the other players moving continuously around the pool. They are not allowed to touch the bottom of the pool and must tread water the entire time – although players use a movement called the egg-beater which is more efficient than the normal action of treading water.